Refrigerator car door



June 7, 1938. w M DWYER 2,119,574

REFRIGERATOR CAR DOOR Filed Oct. 19, 1936 6 Sheets-Sheet l 5 WilliamMflwyer' June 7, 1938. w, M. DWYER REFRIGERATOR CAR DOOR Filed Oct. 19,1936 6 Sheets-Sheet 2 .fiwerzibr v WzZlzkzmMDwyer' .1; g:-

w. DWYER REFRIGERATOR GAR DOOR June 7, 1938.

Filed Oct. 19, 1936 e Sheets-Shet 3 frzverzz'ow Willie! Mfiwqer' June 7,1938.

W. M. DWYER REFRIGERATOR CAR DOOR Filed Oct. '19; 1936 e Sheets-Sheet 4Irzizerzfiyk Williarrz Mfiwyer June 7, w M W R 2,119,574

REFRIGERATOR CAR DOOR Filed Oct. 19, 1936 6 Sheets-Sheet 5 6 IrzvmiarMZllz'am M fiwyer June 7, 1938. I DWYER 2,119,574

REFRIGERATOR CAR DOOR Filed Oct. 19 1936 6 Sheets-Sheet 6 Fig. 8

. Inventor Willdzm Mfiwyer Patented June 7, 1938 REFRIGERATOR GAR nooRWilliam M. Dwyer, Chicago, Ill., assignor to W. H.

Miner, Inc., Chicago, 111., a corporation of Delaware ApplicationOctober 19, 1936, Serial No. 106,300

15 Claims.

This invention relates to improvements in refrigerator car doors.

,One object of the invention is to provide a door construction forrefrigerator cars compris- 5 ing a sliding door member for closing thedoor opening of the car, and means for supporting the door for movementtoward and away from the side of the car, wherein simple and efficientmanually actuated means is employed for moving the 9 door into the dooropening and forcing the door tightly closed or prying the door open andmoving the same out of the door opening, so designed that the supportingmeans is entirely relieved from strain during the final closing andinitial opening operations while the door is being forced tightly closedand pried open.

A further object of the invention is to provide means of the characterdescribed in the preceding paragraph, which is so designed and arrangedthat the projection of the parts thereof will not exceed certainpredescribed limits so that the mechanism will clear the usual loadingplatform structure, tunnel walls, and all other obstructions encounteredin standard railway practice. :55 Another object of the invention is toprovide in a door construction of the characterhereinbefore described,efiicient, manually actuated mechanism for successively moving the doorinto the door opening and forcing the same to tightly closed position orsuccessively prying the door open and moving the same to a positionclear of the car wall, comprising crank arms for supporting and movingthe door into and out of the door opening, and keeper and cooperatingkeeper 55 engaging means for effecting the final closing :and initialopening movements of the door, wherein the keeper means is mounted onthecar wall and the cooperating keeper engaging means is actuatedindependently of the supporting crank arms -i0 during said final closingand initial opening movements of the door, thereby assuring tightclosing and forcible opening movements of the door without subjectingthe supporting means .to any excessive strains during these operations.A more specific object of the invention is to provide a doorconstruction and operating means therefor of the character described inthe preceding paragraph, so arranged and designed that the manuallyactuated means which effects opening and closing movements of the doorcontrols the operations of the crank arms and the keeper engaging meansto effect movement of the door rapidly inwardly and outwardly throughpositive actuation of the crank arms and to bring the keeper engagingmeans into and out of cooperachronism with the movement tive relationwith the keepers and effect operation of the keeper engaging means inthe final closing and initial opening movements of the door, with slowermovement of said arms in synproduced by said 5 keeper engaging means. r

A still further object of the invention is to provide in a sliding doorconstruction for refrigerator cars, actuating means engageable withrugged and substantial fixed keepers for either forcing the door tightlyclosed after it has been moved to partly closed position, or prying thesame partly open, the actuating means being designed tooperatively'connect with movable supporting means for the door toactuate the supporting means to either move the door into the dooropening to said partly closed position, or withdraw the door from saiddoor opening.

Yet another object of the invention is to provide an operating means ofthe character set forth in the preceding paragraph, which, during thefinal closing and initial opening movements of the door, isautomatically disconnected from the movable means for supporting andguiding the door. 7 I

Other objects of the invention will more clear- 1y appear from thedescription and claims hereinafter following.

In the drawings forming a part of this specification, Figure 1 is anelevational view, partly broken away, of the side wall of a refrigeratorcar, illustrating my improvements-in connection therewith, said viewshowing the door closed. Figure 2 is a viewcorrespo-nding to Figure '1,on an enlarged scale, of the mechanism shown at the 35 lower left handcorner of Figure 1. Figure 3 is a horizontal sectional view,corresponding substantially to the line 33 of Figure 2. Figure 4 is aview, similar to Figure 3, but showing the parts in position with thedoor withdrawn from 0 the door opening clear of the side wall of thecar. Figure 5 is a broken, vertical, sectional view, on an enlargedscale, corresponding substantially to the line 5-5 of Figure 1. Figure'6 is a view, similar to Figure 5, but showing the doorwithdrawn fromthe door opening to clear'the side wall of the car. Figure '7 is a View,similar to Figure 1, illustrating another embodiment of the invention.Figure 8 is a View corresponding to Figure '7, on an enlarged scale, ofthe mechanism shown at the lower left hand corner of Figure 7. Figure 9is a horizontal sectional view, corresponding substantially to theline9-9;.of

Figure .8. Figure 10 is a view, similar toi-Figure 9, but showing'thedoor withdrawn from the opening to clear the side wallof the car.

door

In said drawings, 20 indicates the side Wall of the car, which side wallis provided with the usual door opening 2! closed by a singledoor 2 2.The door 22 is slidable lengthwise of the car and is displaceablelaterally in reversedirections to either move thedoor into or Withdrawit from the door. opening 2|. As shown, the cooperating engaging edgefaces of the door and walls of the door opening are beveled and theusualinsulating packing material indicated at 23 is eni-I ployed to sealthe joint between therdoor and walls of the door opening.

Referring first to the embodiment of the invention illustrated inFigures '1 to 6 inclusive, my

improvements jcomprise broadly top and bottom tracks A' -A; carriers BBcooperating with the bottom track Aipairs of top an elongated bar memberf 28 of substantially Z-shaped cross section fixed to the section 21,

with the lowerfiange of theformer spaced outand bottom'supportingbrackets C-C andC-C; a 'pairiofvertically disposed combined, operatingand keep er engaging crank shafts D-eD; pairs of top and bottomkeepers,E-+E and E -E;, pairs of top and bottom supporting crankshaftsfF,-F andF-F; pairsof sliding rack members ,G-G and 'G-QG;interrupted pinion gears and I-IH on the combined operating and 1 keeperengaging crank shafts .D -D meshingwith the rack members G. Gjand GGyand interrupted pinion gears K. K and onthe supporting crank shaftsF-F and FFfc'ooperating with the rackmembers G. G an d (3-.

The top and bottomltracks AQ A, than are disposed respectively above andbelow the door opening 2|, are of suchalength that the door ZZmay beslid entirely cleanof the door open ing. The bottom, track A is in theform of an elongated bar having a substantially flat, verticallydisposed, sectionfl fixed to the side wall of the 'car, a hgrizontallydisposed outstanding section 25 at the bottom of the section 24, and avertically disposed flange section 26 at the outer edge of the section25, the flange section 26 forming' the rail member'proper" of the track.The

top track A comprises an elongated, fiat, barlike' section 2,! securedto the side wall of the cal. and

I Qm the i n 1 1 1 P ovid d w wardly facing guide channel, 2,9therebetween.

As most clearly shown in Figure 1', each track A is provided jwith astopmemberlSO atthe left hand end thereof, said stop member, beingprefer ,ablyin the form" of a block fixed to-the track in any suitablemannen, The stop block 30 lof the bottom track A is preferably securedto the vertical section, 24 ofsaid track and extends into the channelbetween said section and the flange 26. The stop block 3ll of the toptrack is seated in the channel 29'thereof and is fixed to the sidewalls' ofsaid tracki l l The combined operating and keeper engagingshafts D"D are arranged vertically and'disposed at opposite sides ofthedoor, each shaft D being rotatablysupported'b y the correspondingtopand bottom brackets CC, which brackets are secured tof the door adjacentto'the top and bottom edges thereof. EachjshaftD is provided with anop-" erating handle lever 3|, which is pivoted to the shaft .forswinging movement in a vertical plane, so, that it may occupy either thehorizontal position shown. in Figure 1 or may be dropped to a verticalposition parallel to said shaft. At the toprandbottom ends, each shaftDis provided.-

- edge of the door.

with end members 32-32 which are fixed to said shaft and have crank arms33-33 at the outer ends thereof extending radially therefrom andprovided with keeper engaging pin portions 34-34 at their outer ends.The keeper engaging portions 34-34 are of generally cylindrical.

forinv and each has a flattened face portion35' for a purposehereinafter described.

r .The supporting brackets CC and C-C are of similar design, the topbrackets being arranged reversely to the bottom brackets. These bracketsare preferably in theform of castings se' cured to the outer side of thedoor, each casting having a pair of vertically disposed, partlycylindrical bearing sleeves (it-36 formed integral therewith. Thebearing sleeves 36-36 of each bracket are laterally spaced as shownmostclearly in Figures I, 2, 3,1and 4, and extend outwardly from the mainbody portion of the casting to the The sleeves 36-436 are enlarged indiameter attheirinner ends, asindicated at 31-31, and these enlargedsections open into a horizontally arranged housing portion 38.

of said casting. The housing portion 38 has a' horizontally extending,interior guidevvay J38 on the innerside thereof adapted to slidinglyaccommodate andguide the corresponding rack member G. Q V 1 Thetop andbottom end members 32-32 of eachshaft D are provided with cylindricalbearing sections inwardlyjof the crank end portions thereof, whichbearing sections are journaled in the innermost sle'e'ves36'36 of thecorrespond ing top' and bottom brackets 0-0. The parts are soproportioned that the top and bottom keeper engaging crank members ofeach shaft D project a sufficient distance beyond the top and bottomedges of' the door to properly cooperate with the corresponding pair ofkeepers E E. Each shaft D is provided with two gear members HH, thesegear members being preferably formedintegral with the end members 32-3Z.The gear memberH of each end member 32 is disposed at the inner end (ifthe cylindrical bearing section thereof and occupies the enlarged"portion 31 of the innermost bearing sleeve 36 of the cooperatingsupporting casting C.; Assh'own most clearly in Figures 3 and 4, eachofthe gears H has the teeth thereof interrupted, thereby pro viding partgear members for a purpose hereinafter pointed out. Each end member 32also has a short cylindrical bearing section beyond the correspondinggear H, said bearing section being journaled in a bearing member 39 ofthe housi'ng portion 38 of the bracket C,

The supporting crank shafts F'F and FF are arranged in pairs at oppositesides of the door, one member of each pair at the top and the other atthe bottom of said door. .Each' crank shaft F comprises a verticallydisposed, cylin drical shaft portion 40, a radially disposed arm 4 I: atthe outer end of said shaft portion, a vertically disposed, cylindrical,bearing projection or pin 42 at the outer end of the armldl, and a gearmemberK formed integral with the shaft portion 40 adjacent to theinnerend of the latter. Each crank shaft F has the shaft portion 40thereof journaled in the outer bearing sleeve36 of the correspondingsupporting casting C and has the gear K thereof accommodated in theenlarged section 31 of saidsleeve. The teeth of the gear K of each shaftF are interrupted, as clearly shown in Figures 3 and l, for a purposeherein after. pointed out. 7

The crank, shafts E-F nd F F. rveto support and guide the door in itsmovements into and out of the :door opening, and are slidingly guided bythe top and bottom tracks A-A.

The carriers B-B which cooperate with the bottom track A support thebottom crank members F-F. Each carrier B is in the form of an elongatedslide having enlarged end portions housing anti-friction supportingrollers 43-43 which are rotatably journaled in said slide :and projecttherefrom to engage with said bottom track A. These anti-frictionrollers are prefer ably grooved, as shown in Figures 5 and 6, to receiveand ride on the upstanding flange of said bottom track A. Substantiallymidway between the ends thereof, each carrier B is provided with avertically disposed, cylindrical bearing opening 44 in 'which'thebearing or pivot pin 42 of the corresponding bottom supporting crankshaft F is journaled. The bearing pin portions of the top crank shaftsF-F extend into the channel 29 of the toptrack A and carry anti-frictionrollers 45-45 which are journaled thereon for rotation about verticalaxes and substantially fit between the side walls of said track toproperly support and guide the top crank arms for sliding movementlengthwise of the car. As will be evident, the door 22 is thus supportedfor sliding movement lengthwise of the car and for movement into and outof the door opening by the top and bottom crank shafts F-F and F-F, thearms of which have pivotal swinging connection with the supporting andguiding carriers on said tracks, the rollers 45-45 forming carrierswhich cooperate with the top track A.

The rack members G-G and G-G are all of similar design. Each rack memberG is in the form of an elongated bar of channel-shaped cross sectionguided in the horizontal guideway 138 of the corresponding supportingcasting C. Each rack G is provided with two sets or series of rack teeth46 and 41, said two sets of teeth being spaced apartas clearly shown inFigures 3 and 4, and the set 41 being of greater length than the set 46and meshing with the teeth of the gear H of the corresponding end memberof one of the shafts D. The two sets of teeth are so arranged that theset 46 is out of mesh with the gear K of the supporting crank shaftmember F when the parts are in the position shown in Fig-- ures 1, 2, 3,and 5, and are brought into mesh with said gear when the rack is moved asufficient distance to the right, as viewed in Figures 1, 2, and 3, toeffect rotation of the crank shaft F.

The keepers E-E and E-E are preferably in the form of castings securedto the side wall of the car in pairs at opposite sides of the dooropening, the members of each pair being in vertical alignment anddisposed respectively above and below the door opening 2!. Each keeper Eis provided with an outwardly opening, inclined guideway which forms, ineffect, a :cam groove or way 48, adapted to accommodate the keeperengaging pin portion 34 of the crank arm 33 of the corresponding crankmember of one of the shafts D. These keepers E-E and E-E are sopositioned that, when the door 22 is moved in front of the opening 2|and the crank arms F-F and F-F are rotated to swing the door inwardly.the keeper engaging portions 34-34 and 34-34 of the shafts D-D will bealigned with and enter into the slots or cam ways 48-48-4'8-48 of thekeepers.

Latch means 49-49 of any well-known type is employed to lock theoperating handles 34-3! of the shaftsD-D' in the position with the :door

closed, as illustrated in Figure .1. Additional latch means 50-50 of anywell-known design is also provided for locking the operating levers3l-3l in position when the same have been swung through a straight anglefrom the ;posi 1 tion shown in Figure 1, in rotating the shaft to openthe door. When thus locked by the latch members 50-50, thelevers -3l-3'lof the shafts D-D hold the latter and theintergeared crank shafts F-Fand F-F against rotation to hold the door in parallel :relation to theside Wall of the car and against lateral displacement while the same isbeing slid along the tracks .A-A.

The operation of my improved mechanism shown in Figures 1 to 6inclusivein opening the door is as follows: With the door closed, asshown in Figure 1, after unlocking the handle levers 3 I-3 I each leveris swung outwardly away from the door, thereby rotating thecorresponding shaft D. These handle levers may be actuated i eithersimultaneously or successively,.as desired. As will be evident, theshafts D-D will thus @be rotated in opposite directions. Except for thefact that the shafts D-D are rotated in opposite directions, theoperation thereof is the same in each instance. Upon rotation of eitherof the shafts D, the top and bottom gears H-H thereof which are in meshwith the top and bottom racks G-G will effect sliding movement of saidracks, the racks G-G associated with the shaft D at the left hand sideof the door being moved to the right, and the racks G-G associated withthe shaft D at the right hand side of the door being moved to the left.During rotation-of each shaft D, the keeper engaging crank membersthereof,

which are in operativeengagement with the corresponding keepers E-E,will pry the door out of the door opening. During this movement of theshafts, the keeper engaging crank members will leave the cam ways of thekeepers E-E and the toothed rack sections 46-46 of the racks G-G will bebrought into mesh with the interrupted pinion gears K-K of the crankmembers F-F and rotate the latter to swing the door outwardly to theposition shown in Figure 4.

When the parts are in the position shown in Figure 4, the shaft D willhave been rotated through an arc of approximately and the operatinghandle lever 3! thereof will be disposed at the side of the shaftopposite to that occupied in Figure l. The attendant then locks thelever 3| to the door'by means of the latch 50, thereby holding the shaftD against rotation and through the geared connection with the crankshafts F-F, also looking the latter in fixed position. As will beevident, when both shafts D-D have been thus operated and locked inposition, the door will be held spaced from the side wall of "the car asufficient distance to clear'fsaid wall, as clearly disclosed in Figures4 and '6. The attendant then slides the door along the tracks tocompletely clear the door opening. In closing the door 22, the same isslid to the position in front of the door opening 2!, .as shown inFigure 4. The actuating levers 31-31 are then unlocked and the shaftsD-D rotated in reverse directions to the directions hereinbeforedescribed,'thereby sliding the racks G-G and G-G and rotating thesupporting crank members F-F and F-F to swing the door 22 into the dooropening. During this rotation of 'the shafts D-D and the crank membersF-F and the keeper engaging crank ends of the shafts D-D will be broughtinto alignment with the cam ways of the keepers E--E and E-E;Asthekeeper engaging or crank are in: flat bearing engagement with' theouter pin portions 34-34 of' the crank arms of each shaft D enter thecam ways of the keepers, the teeth 46-46 of the racks G-G will clear thegears KK, thereby permitting free rotation of the crank members 3I-3lduring the remainder of the door closing operation.

Continued rotation of the shafts DD will bring the crank pins 3434 intoengagement with the outer walls of the'cam ways of the keepers 'E-E andcam the door inwardly to the position shown'in Figures 1 and 3. Theoperating handle levers 3I'3'l of the shafts DD are then lockedin'position by the latch members 49-49, as shown in Figure 1. The gearsHH and H-H of the shafts DD are at all times in mesh with the racks GGand G-G, and as the rotation of these shafts 'is through an arc notgreater than 180, only partial sets of teeth arerequired' on thesegears, but, as will be evident, .the teeth need not be interrupted andgears having complete setsof teeth aroundtheir'circumference maybeemployed without effecting or altering the operation of the mechanism.V V

When the dooris closed, the'flat faces 35'35 and 3535 of the'crank pins3434 and til-34 walls of 'theslots'of the keepers K and as clearly shownin Figure 3, thereby'locking. the

. shafts DD against accidental rotation.

Referring next to the embodiment of the invenno illustrated in'Figures'7, 8, 9, and 10, the construction is substantially the same as thatillustrated in Figures 1 to'6, with the exception that the racks GG andGG are omitted and the 7 gears on the combined operating and keeper en,-

gaging shafts D'-D are adapted to mesh directly with the gears on thesupporting crank shafts FF and FF, and that the supportingbrackets forthe shafts DD and the crank shafts 'F-F In the operation of themechanism'shown in and FF, which correspond to the brackets 0 -0 and CC,are modified accordingly. These supporting brackets are indicated byfM'M and MM in Figures 7, 8, 9, and 10.

As shown in'the last named figures, the end members 32;;32 of each shaftD are provided with integral enlargements forming gear members PP whichhave interrupted teeth 5l 5l, and the cooperating supporting shafts FFare provided with-integral enlargements forming gears,

RR which have interrupted teeth 52 52. 'The bearing portions of eachshaft D are rotatably supported inf outer bearing sleeve sections'53-53formed on the corresponding top and bottom sup porting brackets MM, andthe bearing portions of the cooperating crank shafts FF are journaled inthe inner bearing sleeve sections MM of said brackets. 7 Each bearingbracket M is provided with a suitable housing portion55for theearsPahdR;1"f K 'As shown'most clearly in Figures 9 and 10, the firsttooth at the right hand end of the set of teeth 5| of the gear P isshortened so that it will clear the second tooth from the left hand endof the set of teeth 52 of the gear R, where by engagement of said endtooth of "the gear P with the end tooth of the set of teeth 52'01 the.gear R is assured.

Figures 'Tto 10 inclusiva assuming that the door 22 'is' in the closedposition shown in Figures 7,

' 8, and 9', rotation of the shaft D in a clockwise direction,.as viewedin Figure 9, effects outward camming of the door through operation ofthe keeper engaging crank ends of theshaft D, which crank ends are inengagement with the keepers E-E. The door is thus forced open 'in'thesam( manner as the construction illustrated in Figure: l to 6 inclusive.As the door is pried outwardly the keeper engaging crank ends of theshaft]; will pass out of the cam slots of the keepers E-gE and at thesame time the teeth 5l-'5l of the gears P-'P will be brought into meshwith the teeth 52+-52 of the gears R R and'upon: further continuedrotation of the shaft D, the crank shafts FF will berotated to swing thearms thereof outwardly and completely withdraw the door 22 from the dooropening 2|, as shown'in Figure 10.

In closing the door, each shaft D is'rotated in a reverse direction toswing the crank shafts FF inwardly to move the door into the dooropening and then 'cam the .door to tightly closed position by means ofthe keeper engaging crank members of the shafts DD, in the same'manneras described inconnection with the 'construction shown in Figures 1 to 6inclusive; As 'will be evident, in the closing operation'the'gear teeth5| of the gears P will become completely disengaged from the teeth 52 ofthe gear B. when the keeper engaging crank ends of: the

shaft D enter the camslots of the keepers thus leaving the crank shaftsF-F 'freeto'rotate as the arms thereof are'swung through in'wardmovement of the door by the action of the keeper engaging crankmembers. f

I have herein shown and described what I now consider the: preferredmanner of carrying out my invention, but the same is merely illustra-'ing, the combination with a door, adapted to close said opening; ofguide track means on said car; carrier means slidingly guided on ".saidguide track means; and'means for moving said door 7 to open or close thesame; including a manually actuated operating membermovably mounted on37 the door, fixed keeper means *with respect to which the carrier meansis movablefrnovablei means supporting the door on said carrier means,means for actuating said, movable means by oper ation of said membertoYmove said door either into or out of. the door opening, and means onsaid operating member engageable with said keeper means for eitherprying the door'open or forcing the same tightly closed.

2. 'In a door construction for refrigeratorcars having .a wall memberprovided with a door opening, the combination with a door adapted toclose said opening; of guide track means o'n said car; carrier means.slidingly' guided on said track means; and means for to open or closethe same including a manually actuated operating member movably mountedon moving said door,

said door, fixed keeper meanswith respect to' k which said carrier meansis movable, keeper en gaging means on said operating member engageablewith said keeper means'for'either forcing said door tightly closed orprying the same part- 1y open, movable means supporting the door on saidcarrier means for movement toward and away from the door opening,means'for transa mitting motion from said operating member to saidmovable means foractuating the latter to move said door either into, thedoor openingto engage said keeper engaging means with the fixed keepermeans or out of the door opening to disengage said keeper engaging-meansfrom said fixed keeper'means.

3. In a door construction for refrigerator cars having a. wall memberprovided with a door opening, the combination witha door adapted toclose said opening; of guide track means on said car; carrier meansslidingly guided on said guide track means; and means for moving saiddoor to open and close the same including a manually actuated rotaryoperatingl bar mounted on the door, fixed keeper means on the car withrespect to which said carrier means is movable, suppoiting armsrotatably mounted on the door and pivoted for swinging movement on saidcarrier means, keeper engaging means on said operating bar engageablewith said keeper means for forcing the door either tightly closed orprying the same partly open, and drive means connecting said operatingbar and arms for rotating the latter todisplace the door to eitherengage said keeper engaging means with the keepers or disengage the sametherefrom.

4. In a, door construction for refrigerator cars having a wall memberprovided with a door opening, the combination with a door'adapted toclose said opening; of guide track means on said wall member; carriermeans slidably guided on each track; fixed keepers on the car wall;rotary supporting crank shafts mounted on the door, said shafts havingthe outer ends of the crank arms thereof pivotally supported on saidcarrier means; a manually actuated rotary operating bar mounted on thedoor; keeper engaging means on said bar engageable with said keepers;and interrupted gear means operatively connecting said operating bar andcrank shafts to rotate the latter during part of the door opening andclosing operations.

5. In a door construction for refrigerator cars having a wall memberprovided with a door opening, the combination with a door adapted toclose said opening; of guide track means on said wall; carrier meansslidably guided on said track means; fixed keeper means on the car wall;swinging arms pivotally supported at their outer ends on said carriermeans and swingingly supported at their inner ends on the door forguiding said door either into or out of the door opening; a manuallyactuated rotary operating shaft on the door, said shaft having keeperengaging means engageable with said keepers; and gear means connectingsaid arms and operating shaft for swinging said arms, said gear meansincluding driving and driven members, one of said members havinginterrupted teeth to effect disconnection of said gears during part ofthe opening and closing movements of said door.

6. In a door construction for refrigerator cars having a wall memberprovided with a door opening, the combination with a door adapted toclose said opening; of guide track means on said wall member; carriermeans slidably guided on said track means; fixed keeper means on thecar; a supporting crank member rotatably mounted on the door and havingthe outer end of the crank arm thereof journaled on said carrier means;a manually actuated rotary operating bar mounted one the door, said barhaving keeper engaging crank means adapted to engage with said keepermeans; and means for rotating said crank arm including a sliding rackmember, and cooperating gears on said crank arm and operating bar, saidrack having the teeth thereof interrupted to effect disengagement ofsaid rack from the gear of the crank arm during part of the rotation ofsaid operatingbar. I

'7. In a door construction for refrigerator cars having a wall memberprovided with a door opening, the combination with a door adapted toclose said opening;'of guide track means on'said'wall member; carriermeans slidably guided on said track means; fixed keeper means on thecar; a supporting arm rotatably journaled at one end on the door and atthe other end on said carrier means; an operating shaft rotatablymounted on the door, said shaft having keeper engaging means rotatabletherewith and engageable with said keeper means; and intermittentdriving gear connections between said shaft and arm for intermittentlyeffecting rotation of the latter during rotation of said shaft.

8. -In a door construction for refrigerator cars having a-wall memberprovided with a door opening, the combination with a door adapted toclose said opening; of guide track means on said Wall member; carriermeans slidably guided on said track means; fixed keepers on said wall;supporting crank arms rotatably mounted on said door and pivotallysupporting the door on said carrier means; a rotary operating shaftmounted on said door, said shaft'having keeper engaging crank memberscooperating with said keepers; and means driven by said operating shaftfor rotating said arms with respect to the door while said keeperengaging crank members are disengaged from said keeper means, includingintermeshing gear means having the toothed portions thereof interruptedto effect disengagement of said gear means during operative engagementbetween said keeper engaging crank means and keeper means.

9. In a door construction for refrigerator cars having a wall memberprovided with a-door opening, the combination with a door adapted toclose said opening; of guide track means on said wall member; carriermeans slidably guided on said track means; fixed keepers on said wall;supporting crank members journaled on the door and having the outer endsof the crank arms thereof journaled on the carrier means; a rotaryoperating shaft on said door having keeper engaging means thereonengageable with said keepers; and cooperating interengageable rotarygears fixed to said operating shaft and crank members for driving thelatter, said gears having the teeth thereof interrupted to efiectdisengagement thereof during part of the rotation of said shaft.

10. In a door construction for refrigerator cars having a wall memberprovided with a door opening, the combination with a door adapted toclose said opening; of guide track means on said car; carrier meansslidingly guided on said track means; keeper means fixed to said carwall; a rotary operating bar on said door having means thereonengageable with said keepers; rotary supporting shafts on said doorjournaled on axes eccentric to said operating bar; radial supportingarms on said shaftspivotally supported at their outer ends on saidcarrier means; and intermittent drive means operatively connecting saidoperating bar to said shafts for rotating the latter during rotation ofsaid operating bar.

11. In a door construction for refrigerator cars having a wall memberprovided with a door opening, the combination with a door adapted toclose said opening; of guide tracks on said car; swinging supportingarms slidingly guided at their outer ends on said tracks and rotatablyconnected at their inner ends to the door; gear means for rotating saidarms on said'door; a rotary operating shaft on said door; driving gearsfixed to said shaft; sliding racks on said door reciprocated by saidgears, said racks having in-' terrupted toothed engagement with saidgear means for intermittently driving the latter to impart rotarymovement to said arms; keepers on said car wall; and keeper engagingmeans on said shaft rotatable therewith and engageable with said keepersto force said door either tightly closed or pry the same open.

' means on the c'ar'wall; a rotary operating bar vjournaled on saiddoor; gears on said bar mesh- 12. In a doorconstruction for refrigeratorcars having a wall member provided with a door opening, the combinationwith a door adapted to close said opening; of 'guide tracks on said carWall; supporting crank shafts journaled on said door and having theouter ends thereof swingingly supported from said tracks; gears on saidcrank shaftsgeach of said gears having an interrupted set of gear teeththereon; keeper ingwith said interrupted sets of teeth of said firstnamed gears; and keeper engaging crank members on said rotary shaft'engageable with said keeper means. i

13. In a door construction for refrigerator cars having a wall memberprovided with a door opening; the combination with a door adapted toclose said opening; of guide tracks on said car wall; a supporting crankshaft journaled on said door and having swinging connection with saidtracks; a gear on said crank shaft; a keeper on the car wall; a rotarykeeper engaging member on said door engageable with the keeper forforcing the door tightly closed or prying the same partly open; a gearfixed to said rotary keeper engaging member; and a reciprocating rackbar on said door cooperating with the gears of said crank shaft andkeeper engaging member, the

teeth of :said rack being'interrupted tohpermit disengagement ofisaidrack from the gear of said crankshaft. o

14. In a door construction for refrigerator cars, havinga wall memberprovided with a door opening, the combination with aodoor adapted toclose saiduopenin'g; of guide tracks'on said wall member; supportingcrank shafts journaled on said door and having swinging connection withsaid tracks; keepers on the ear wall; ro- I tary keeper engaging crankmembers mounted on the door; and means for rotating said keepersengaging crank members and. shafts including reciprocating rack meansoperatively connected to gears on said keeper engaging crank members andcrank shafts.

315. In a door construction for refrigerator cars having a wall memberprovided with a door opening, the combination with a door adapted toclose said opening; of guide tracks on said wall member; supportingcrank shafts journaled on said door and having swinging connection' withsaid tracks; keepers on the car wall; ro-

tary keeper engaging crank members omounted' I on the door; and meansfor rotating said keeper engaging crank members and crank shaftsincluding driving connections between said keeper engaging crank membersand crank shafts for producing synchronized rotary movement thereof to"swing said crank shaftson said tracks to displace said door eitherinwardly or outwardly with respect to the side of the car and eitherbring said keeper engaging members into opera tive engagement with thekeepers or remove thev same from said operative engagement and rotatesaid keeper engaging members while engaged with the keepers to eitherforce said door tightly closed or pry the same partly open.

WILLIAM M. DWYER. 40

